Written Answers Monday 28 July 2008

Scottish Executive

Children and Young People

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to promote the food and drink industry as a career option in schools.

Adam Ingram: The key aim of Curriculum for Excellence is to help prepare all young people in Scotland to take their place in a modern society and economy by delivering opportunities to develop skills for life and skills for work. This includes options for young people to explore a range of issues and to participate in practical activities relating to particular sectors, including food and health.

  As part of this investment in vocational learning opportunities, Skills for Work qualifications have been developed to encourage young people to develop knowledge and skills which will be important for employment and for life in general, and to provide a variety of practical experiences linked to particular careers. Hospitality Intermediate Levels 1 and 2 are two examples which offer specific vocational skills and experience of the food and drink sector. Such learning is often delivered in partnership with other providers, including colleges.

  There is on-going engagement between Improve, the Sector Skills Council for the Food and Drink Industry, the careers arm of Skills Development Scotland and the Determined to Succeed teams to increase awareness of the food and drink sector and the career opportunities available within it.

Forensic Science

Margaret Smith (Edinburgh West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has plans to reduce the number of forensic fingerprint laboratories and, if so, when it will do so.

Kenny MacAskill: The provision of police forensic science services, including fingerprints, is the responsibility of the Scottish Police Services Authority.

Foster Care

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, following the publication of Getting it Right for Every Child in Kinship and Foster Care , by what date it expects all local authorities to extend fostering placements to age 18.

Adam Ingram: At present, local authorities can extend fostering placements to age 18 and beyond if it is in the best interests of the young person in foster care and with the agreement of the foster carer.

  We will support local authorities to do this through issuing guidance along with forthcoming revised Looked After Children (Scotland) regulations.

Foster Care

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, following the publication of Getting it Right for Every Child in Kinship and Foster Care , by what date it expect all local authorities to be paying at least the minimum fostering allowances based on The Fostering Network's recommended role and what actions it is taking to monitor implementation of the payment to (a) foster parents and (b) kinship carers.

Adam Ingram: We continue to support the payment of allowances based on The Fostering Network’s recommended rate of allowance. It is however up to individual local authorities to decide on an appropriate rate of allowance based on their local need and priorities.

  One of the commitments within our historic concordat with COSLA is to pay approved kinship carers of looked after children a weekly allowance, at the same rate as the local authority’s foster carers. Progress against each of the commitments in the concordat will be reported annually by COSLA at the end of each financial year.

Foster Care

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, following the publication of Getting it Right for Every Child in Kinship and Foster Care , by what date it expects (a) the British Association for Adoption and Fostering and The Fostering Network to have presented their recommendations for the assessment of kinship carers and (b) to have published regulations for the assessment and approval of kinship carers.

Adam Ingram: The reference group, led by the British Association for Adoption and Fostering and the Fostering Network will present their initial recommendations for the assessment and approval of kinship carers to Scottish ministers in the late summer.

  Revised regulations, including regulations for the assessment and approval of kinship carers, will be laid before the Parliament once ministers have considered these recommendations and the independent analysis of responses to the consultation on the draft Looked After Children (Scotland) regulations.

Foster Care

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, following the publication of Getting it Right for Every Child in Kinship and Foster Care , whether it has agreed with COSLA that fostering allowances should be paid to kinship carers in any period between now and the completion of the assessment and approval process.

Adam Ingram: Where a "looked after" child is already living with a kinship carer and the local authority is satisfied that its approval process and the current arrangements for the child are satisfactory, the authority may already be in a position to pay allowances equivalent to those to paid foster carers. This is a decision for each local authority.

  The Getting it Right for Every Child in Kinship and Foster Care reference group will be producing guidance on the assessment and approval process for kinship carers of "looked after" children in the late summer.

Foster Care

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, following the publication of Getting it Right for Every Child in Kinship and Foster Care , whether it will issue guidance to the Care Commission and the Social Work Inspection Agency on the appropriate limits on placement of children with foster parents.

Adam Ingram: As stated in Getting it Right for Every Child in Kinship and Foster Care , the appropriate placement limit depends on the circumstances of the individual carer. The Looked After Children (Scotland) regulations will require a fostering panel to approve the maximum number of children that a foster carer may have in their care at any one time.

  We will issue guidance to support the updated Looked After Children (Scotland) regulations, which will be brought before Parliament later this year.

  The Care Commission regulates all children's social care services, including fostering and adoption services. The Care Commission will inspect local authority fostering services and monitor compliance with the regulations.

Fuel Costs

Jamie Hepburn (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on average household expenditure on (a) gas and (b) electricity bills in each year since 1960.

Stewart Maxwell: The Scottish House Condition Survey (SCHS) provides survey estimates of household gas and electricity expenditure for the years 1996, 2002, 2003-04, 2004-05 and 2005-06.

  The Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) provides data for Scotland going back to 1990 for gas and electricity expenditure but only broken down by payment method – with no total. http://www.berr.gov.uk/energy/statistics/publications/prices/tables/page18125.html

  The same departmental site also provides UK expenditure on domestic electricity and gas going back to 1974 (table 2.6.2 Average Expenditure Each Week on Fuel per Consuming Household). A comparison of levels of expenditure in Scotland and the UK can be made where statistics exist from both data sources for a particular year.

  The Office for National Statistics Family and Expenditure Survey, "Family Spending", also provides average weekly household expenditure on gas and electricity for Scotland back to 1999.

  http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=361

  From the average ratio of these comparisons, the average annual domestic expenditure on (a) gas and (b) electricity can be constructed for Scotland back to 1974.

  Average Estimated and Projected Annual Household Expenditure on (a) Gas (b) Electricity: Scotland 1974-2006 (figures in bold from SHCS)

  

 Year
 Gas (£)
 Electricity (£)


 1974
 70
 90


 1975
 80
 120


 1976
 90
 140


 1977
 120
 170


 1978
 130
 180


 1979
 140
 200


 1980
 160
 240


 1981
 210
 290


 1982
 260
 310


 1983
 310
 340


 1984
 310
 340


 1985
 340
 360


 1986
 370
 380


 1987
 370
 390


 1988
 350
 390


 1989
 340
 420


 1990
 360
 450


 1991
 420
 490


 1992
 430
 520


 1993-94
 440
 540


 1994-95
 440
 540


 1995-96
 440
 540


 1996-97
 470
 520


 1997-98
 470
 520


 1998-99
 430
 520


 1999-2000
 410
 500


 2000-01
 430
 520


 2001-02
 430
 520


 2002-03
 450
 520


 2003-04
 440
 530


 2004-051
 470
 570


 2005-061
 520
 600


 20061
 560
 650



  Note: 1 The BERR data is for financial years April to March, the SHCS data is for the year October to September. Therefore 2003-04 SHCS data is closest to the 2004-05 financial year.

Fuel Costs

Jamie Hepburn (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on average household expenditure on (a) gas and (b) electricity bills in each year since 1960 as a proportion of average household incomes.

Stewart Maxwell: The Scottish House Condition Survey provides survey estimates of household gas and electricity expenditure for the years 1996, 2002, 2003-04, 2004-05 and 2005-06.

  The Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform provides data for Scotland going back to 1990 for gas and electricity expenditure but only broken down by payment method – with no total.

  http://www.berr.gov.uk/energy/statistics/publications/prices/tables/page18125.html

  The same Departmental site also provides UK expenditure on domestic electricity and gas going back to 1974 (Table 2.6.2 Average Expenditure Each Week on Fuel per Consuming Household). A comparison of levels of expenditure in Scotland and the UK can be made where statistics exist from both data sources for a particular year.

  From the average ratio of these comparisons, the average annual domestic expenditure on (a) gas and (b) electricity can be constructed for Scotland back to 1974.

  "Average" household income figures are very skewed by high income earners. Their incomes distort the average household income figure. Therefore the "Median" household income is the preferred central measure. It is available for Scotland from the Department of Work and Pensions Households Below Average Income data series for the period 1994-95 to 2006-07.

  Therefore, on a consistent basis, using median household disposable income, the proportion of household income spent on (a) gas and (b) electricity is available for the period 1994-95 to 2006-07. The figures for these measures are shown in the following table.

  Average Household Expenditure on (a) Gas (b) Electricity, Median Household Income and Gas and Electricity Costs as a Proportion of Household Income: Scotland 1994-95 to 2006-07

  

 Year
 Average Annual Household Expenditure Gas (£)
 Average Annual Household Expenditure Electricity (£)
 Median Annual Household income for Scotland (£)
 Proportion of Expenditure


 On Gas
 On Electricity


 1994-95
 440 
 540 
 11,300
 0.039 
 0.047


 1995-96
 440 
 540 
 11,500
 0.038
 0.047


 1966-97
 470 
 520 
 12,200
 0.039
 0.043


 1997-98
 470 
 520 
 12,800
 0.037
 0.041


 1998-99
 430 
 520 
 13,600
 0.031
 0.038


 1999-2000
 410 
 500 
 13,500
 0.031
 0.037


 2000-01
 430 
 520 
 14,100
 0.030
 0.037


 2001-02
 430 
 520 
 15,100
 0.028
 0.034


 2002-03
 450 
 520 
 15,400
 0.029
 0.034


 2003-04
 440 
 530 
 16,500
 0.027
 0.032


 2004-05
 470 
 570 
 17,300
 0.027
 0.033


 2005-06
 520 
 600 
 17,800
 0.029
 0.034


 2006-07
 560 
 650 
 18,100
 0.031
 0.036

Homelessness

Jim Tolson (Dunfermline West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many single homeless (a) women and (b) men were in bed and breakfast accommodation in May (i) 2007 and (ii) 2008.

Stewart Maxwell: Councils provide information on numbers of homeless households in temporary accommodation at the end of each quarter. The information provided identifies numbers of households with children or a pregnant household member from other types of household. The information provided does not separately identify numbers of single homeless men and women. The latest available information on numbers in bed and breakfast accommodation is given in the following table.

  Number of Homeless Households in Bed and Breakfast Accommodation

  

 
31 March 2007
30 June 2007
30 September 2007
 31 January  2008


 Households with Children or with Household Member Pregnant
 84
 118
 87
 69


 Other Types of Household1
 1,444
 1,470
 1,405
 1,279



  Source: Quarterly HL2 returns by councils to the Scottish Government.

  Note: 1. Other types of household includes single people and couples without children.

Hospital-Acquired Infection

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when the two patients who died at the Vale of Leven Hospital in June 2008 were infected by clostridium difficile.

Nicola Sturgeon: I am advised by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde that one of the two patients who died in June 2008 tested positive for clostridium difficile on 29 April 2008. The second patient was confirmed clostridium difficile positive on 12 June 2008 and died the next day.

Hospital-Acquired Infection

Ross Finnie (West of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action will be taken against the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley for the second outbreak of MRSA in under three years.

Nicola Sturgeon: I have been advised that NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde followed the guidance set out in Annex 4 of the document Managing Incidents Presenting Actual or Potential Risks to the Public Health: Guidance on the Roles and Responsibilities of Incident Control Teams and that Health Protection Scotland were notified of the outbreak in accordance with the terms of the Watt Matrix adopted across NHS Scotland.

  Health Protection Scotland provided the infection control team with expert advice and support throughout this outbreak and I was kept informed by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde on a daily basis of the condition and progress of the babies colonised with MRSA. None of the babies were a cause of concern and I am advised that standard infection control procedures were followed by staff at the hospital.

  All incidents and outbreaks of infection are regrettable but I am satisfied that all appropriate precautions were taken by the hospital to deal with these MRSA cases and no action is therefore planned.

Ministerial Travel

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many trips have been made by government car between the Parliament and Bute House since May 2007.

John Swinney: One hundred and ninety-two journeys were made between the Parliament and Bute House from 16 May 2007. This includes all official car journeys organised by the Government Car Service for the entire ministerial team.

Ministerial Travel

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many hours the First Minister has spent travelling by plane in an official capacity since May 2007.

John Swinney: Information on air travel by the First Minister from 3 May 2007 to 31 May 2008 is detailed in the following table. On each occasion the First Minister was accompanied by a member of his private office and/or a special adviser.

  

 Route
 Number of Flights
 Number of Hours Travelling


 Dundee:Belfast
 1
 50 minutes


 Belfast:Edinburgh
 1
 50 minutes


 Glasgow:Islay:Glasgow
 2
 1 hour 20 minutes


 Edinburgh:Brussels:Edinburgh
 2
 3 hours 20minutes


 Dundee:Belfast
 1
 50 minutes


 Belfast:Glasgow
 1
 50 minutes


 Edinburgh:London Heathrow: Edinburgh
 2
 2 hours 40 minutes


 Edinburgh:Kirkwall:Edinburgh
 2
 2 hours 35 minutes


 Edinburgh:London City
 1
 1 hour 25 minutes


 London Heathrow:New York
 1
 7 hours 40 minutes


 New York:Edinburgh
 1
 6 hours 45 minutes


 Glasgow:Dubai:Colombo:Dubai:Glasgow
 4
 24 hours 15 minutes


 Aberdeen:London Heathrow
 1
 1 hour 35 minutes


 London City:Glasgow
 1
 1 hour 30 minutes


 Dundee:London City
 1
 1 hour 25 minutes


 London City:Edinburgh
 1
 1 hour 30 minutes


 Edinburgh:London Heathrow
 1
 1 hour 20 minutes


 London City:Edinburgh
 1
 1 hour 30 minutes


 Aberdeen:Shetland:Aberdeen
 2
 2 hours


 Edinburgh:London City:Edinburgh
 2
 3 hours


 Edinburgh:Dublin
 1
 1 hour


 Dublin:Glasgow
 1
 55 minutes


 Edinburgh:London Heathrow
 1
 1 hour 20 minutes


 London City:Edinburgh
 1
 1 hour 25 minutes


 Edinburgh:New York:Boston:
 2
 8 hours 58 minutes


 Boston:Washington:Charlottesville
 2
 2 hours 32 minutes


 New York:Glasgow
 1
 6 hours 40 minutes


 Edinburgh:Brussels:Edinburgh
 2
 3 hours 20 minutes


 Dundee:London City
 1
 1 hour 25 minutes


 London City:Edinburgh
 1
 1 hour 30 minutes


 Edinburgh:Manchester
 1
 1 hour 10 minutes


 Total
 43
 98 hours 25 minutes

Ministerial Travel

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many flights the First Minister has taken in an official capacity since May 2007.

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail the (a) departure and (b) destination point of each flight taken by the First Minister in an official capacity since May 2007 and how many staff accompanied him on each occasion.

John Swinney: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-13835 on 28 July 2008. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Ministerial Travel

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the First Minister travelled at any time by official car in (a) Scotland and (b) London in relation to his attendance in the House of Commons on Wednesday 11 June 2008.

John Swinney: Yes. Use of official cars on 11 June 2008 was fully in line with guidelines on use of Government cars. The First Minister met with the Secretary of State for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform on 11 June 2008 at Victoria Street in London to discuss the recent tanker drivers dispute.

Police

Cathy Peattie (Falkirk East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many police officers have voluntarily resigned in each year since 1996-97, broken down by police force.

Cathy Peattie (Falkirk East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many police officers have left the police force for reasons other than retirement or voluntary resignation, including death, discharge during probation, dismissal or resignation resulting from conduct hearings, conduct regulations and unspecified reasons, in each year since 1996-97, broken down by police force.

Kenny MacAskill: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-15085 on 25 July 2008. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Police

Cathy Peattie (Falkirk East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what its estimate is of the number of police officers that will be recruited in each year to 2011-12, broken down by police force.

Kenny MacAskill: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-15088 on 25 July 2008. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Police

Cathy Peattie (Falkirk East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what its estimate is of the number of civilians that will undertake the investigation of "more serious" crimes such as murder and serious sexual assault, currently normally performed by police officers, in each year to 2011-12, broken down by police force.

Kenny MacAskill: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-15094 on 25 July 2008. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Prison Service

Mike Pringle (Edinburgh South) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many vacancies there were at each (a) prison and (b) young offenders’ institution on 1 June 2008.

Kenny MacAskill: I have asked Mike Ewart, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  On 1 June 2008 the Scottish Prison Service had three vacancies as follows:

  Open to external applicants:

  HM Young Offenders Institution Polmont - Driver

  HM Young Offenders Institution Polmont - Activities Administrator.

  Open to internal applicants:

  HM Prison Peterhead - Prisoner Programmes Officer.

Regeneration

Marilyn Livingstone (Kirkcaldy) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-14103 by Stewart Maxwell on 19 June 2008, what steps it is taking to meet the challenges faced by town centres.

Stewart Maxwell: Local regeneration, including that of town centres, is primarily a matter for local authorities and their partners. However, the Scottish Government has developed a range of national policies that support the regeneration and growth of town, city and village centres across Scotland.

  These include the Small Business Bonus Scheme, introduced on 1 April 2008, our ongoing support for Business Improvement Districts, and planning guidance.

  To advance a shared understanding of the issues facing town centres, the Scottish Government has recently invited a wide range of stakeholders to contribute to a series of facilitated discussions which are intended to identify practical actions which can be taken by local stakeholders and local or central government to sustain and, where necessary, regenerate Scotland’s high streets.